Porto Digital Association is a private non-profit association. It was created in 2004 by the Municipality of Porto, the University of Porto and the Portuguese Business Association (AEP), in cooperation with the company Metro of Porto, in order to promote ICT projects within the context of the city of Porto and its metropolitan area.

Our main goals are:

• to improve the quality of education, particularly through an increased use of ICT on all levels of study, and to contribute to the reduction of digital divide;
• to promote the adoption of technologies that reduce the bureaucracy and increase the integration and efficiency of the municipality services;
• to develop innovative public procurement procedures;
• to boost the city’s entrepreneurship ecosystem, and technological and social innovation;
• to promote open innovation and the cross fertilization of ideas between city stakeholders;
• to boost the city as a living lab.

From 2006 to 2008, Porto Digital implemented an optical fiber network and a public access Wi-Fi network in the city of Porto, which have been increased and improved since then. In 2010, the associates of Porto Digital, led by the Municipality of Porto, launched the new strategic plan, which aims at fostering the development of the city of Porto into a knowledge based city, where innovation plays a key role.

The Municipality of Porto assigned to Porto Digital the responsibility of maintaining and expanding the telecommunications and IoT infrastructure of the city of Porto (in particular, the optical fiber and Wi-Fi networks, and city sensors), and developing a urban platform to consolidate data in the areas of